I am a scholar working at the intersection of the worlds of academia, policy, and practice. My research addresses two fundamental problems: how best to protect civilians, particularly those who intervene in violent conflict, and how to make such intervention more effective, ethical, and responsive to local needs and circumstances. In addition to my book Aid in Danger: The Perils and Promise of Humanitarianism, I have published numerous peer-reviewed articles and policy reports.

I have worked for both government and non-government agencies as a project manager, consultant, and analyst, and provided training to individuals and organizations  in peacebuilding and conflict analysis. Prior to my current position at Manchester, I was a Senior Research Fellow at ODI’s Humanitarian Policy Group, a Fulbright-Schuman Research Scholar (2016-2017), and a AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow (2014-2016) at USAID’s Global Development Lab. I also held faculty positions at the Kroc Institute at the University of Notre Dame (USA) and Conrad Grebel University College (University of Waterloo, Canada). 

My research interests related to humanitarianism, conflict, and peacebuilding are wide-ranging. I have received funding from multiple sources, including the UK Department for International Development, the Research Council of Norway, the Wellcome Trust, the Swiss Development Corporation, the United States Institute of Peace, and the US Agency for International Development. 

My current projects focus on the causes and consequences of violence against aid workers and aid delivery, researching the impact of attacks on healthcare, and the uses and ethics of data and technology in the humanitarian sector. See this link for more: https://larissafast.weebly.com/research.html

Researching the Impact of Attacks on Healthcare

This research is a multi-year research programme to examine the immediate and broader, long-term effects of violent attacks on healthcare. This collaborative project involves researchers at HCRI, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (Karl Blanchet), the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (Len Rubenstein), University of California-Berkeley (Rohini Haar) together with support from Insecurity Insight, Chatham House, and other organisations.

Data and Technology in the Humanitarian Sector

This research, funded by the Research Council of Norway, examines the ethics and uses of data and technology in the humanitarian sector. It is a collaborative effort with researchers at PRIO/University of Oslo (Kristin Bergtora Sandvik, Kristoffer Líden, Maria Gabrielsen Jumbert) and University of Copenhagen (Katja Lindskov Jacobsen). 

The latest publication on 'Rethinking Access' with Katja Lindskov Jacobsen is available as Open Access until April 2020 here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1111/(ISSN)1564-913X.technology

Violence Against Aid Workers and Aid Delivery

This ongoing work is a collaborative effort with Christina Wille and others at Insecurity Insight. The project tracks violence against aid workers and aid delivery, and analyses its causes and consequences.